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Topic: Star Trek Discovery (Read 51759 times)

I don't know if I could get into this series, but I'll give the pilot a chance. Looks a little too dark (mood, warlike) compared to the Star Trek original series, Next Gen, etc but that might just be the trailer. I'd hoped that Discovery would be set in a post TNG/DS9 future, that would be more interesting to me than a prequel, but again, I'll watch and give at least the pilot a chance.

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I'll even excitedly look forward to "flags and footprints" and suborbital missions. Just fly...somewhere.

Certainly the mood of the show is going to be important. What is the show about? By that, I mean, what is the theme? Is it about exploration and discovery? Is it about a positive vision of the future? Or is it going to be dark and grim and about conflict?

One of the most important things that made Star Trek unique was its positive view of the future:

Last year's presidential campaign had the darkest, most negative tone ever in America. Which, for at least a segment of the population, continues unabated. Don't pretend to understand it myself, but ...

What makes you think there's any desire for a positive view of the future, in the present? They all seem to want to "go to hell" right now.

I think you are confusing the polarities here--just because people believe that the current situation is very bad, and/or believe that things are going to get worse, does not mean that people in general do not wish for things to get better. Apocalyptic predictions actually have less appeal than utopian ones.

One of the most important things that made Star Trek unique was its positive view of the future

Last year's presidential campaign had the darkest, most negative tone ever in America. Which, for at least a segment of the population, continues unabated. Don't pretend to understand it myself, but ...

What makes you think there's any desire for a positive view of the future, in the present? They all seem to want to "go to hell" right now.

Against this backdrop, original series Star Trek presented a future where we had learned to work out our problems. They weren't gone, as noted in several of the episodes, but humanity was showing the ability to move through and beyond them.

At times when things are the most disheartening, that is when messages of hope carry the most power.

Against this backdrop, original series Star Trek presented a future where we had learned to work out our problems.

Younger people (I'll say anybody born after 1985 or so) don't have any memory of the Cold War. It was common during the Cold War to believe that the entire planet could blow up. Viewed in those terms, today's problems are relatively small potatoes.

Certainly the mood of the show is going to be important. What is the show about? By that, I mean, what is the theme? Is it about exploration and discovery? Is it about a positive vision of the future? Or is it going to be dark and grim and about conflict?

One of the most important things that made Star Trek unique was its positive view of the future:

Given that Trek has been going downhill since TNG that may not be a bad choice.

I've been watching Enterprise reruns lately, and I'm liking it a lot more than I remembered. I like it more than DSN and Voyager, and I think that some of its episodes rival the best of TNG. One of the reasons I didn't watch it as much when it was originally on TV was that the Columbia accident happened during its run, ruining science fiction for me for awhile. Enterprise also closely follow the 9/11 attacks, making it a tough time to watch such a show.

Trek was always "idea driven". The core of it, for me, was this idea that the entire human race had joined together (before striking out into the universe). Trek seemed to me centered on this one dream, and Enterprise included that idea frequently. Discovery won't be Star Trek if it ignores such ideals.

At the risk of sounding cynical, that action sequence in the trailer seems to say to me: "Because we have absolutely no idea why the ambush and destruction of the USS Kelvin was a huge creative mistake, we've decided to use a hastily-renamed version of the same scene it as the basis of our next series!"

« Last Edit: 09/11/2017 11:14 AM by Ben the Space Brit »

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"Oops! I left the silly thing in reverse!" - Duck Dodgers

~*~*~*~

The Space Shuttle Program - 1981-2011

The time for words has passed; The time has come to put up or shut up!DON'T PROPAGANDISE, FLY!!!

I just watched the premiere. It has possibilities. The special effects are first rate. The ship looks more advanced than anything from the series that are set farther into the future. The dialog does get annoying at times. I guess the second episode is already available on CBS all access. Probably not a spoiler but it does get immediately involved with the Klingons. Not to give anything away, but some of the behavior of some of the characters doesn't seem that realistic. I guess I just need to decide if I want to pay for another entertainment venue - CBS All Access to see the rest of it.

I liked more than I disliked about it. I actually liked the substance of the show more than the style--too many damned lens flares, and the camera did not need to move around the characters all the time. But the story was pretty good. I thought the crew seemed a bit too casual.

From what we've seen (and I'm not really giving away spoilers), the Klingons have a reason to do what they are doing. And it creates an interesting conundrum for our protagonist.

I'll have to look into CBS All Access. Not sure that I want to pay more for TV, but this has potential.

I just looked at the options for CBS All access. They have a free trial week where you can see the second episode, but you have to pick a plan and give them a credit card number. I think you have to cancel within the week or the plan starts. $5.99 / mo with what they call limited commercials and $9.99 /mo for commercial free.

Saw E1 and E2 tonight....enjoyed it...great effects but more importantly the story line looks like it's got legs...interesting to see things from both the Klingon and Federation perspectives...acting was good as well.

E1 was a tad uneven, pilot-itis, but I totally buy Michelle Yeoh as a Captain and Sonequa Martin-Green as her ballsy XO. Off to CBS All Access for the rest of it....

Bring on the "Vulcan hello"!

The part I didn't like was the XO's method of setting a course of action towards the end of E1. Especially with someone raised by Vulcans, I didn't buy it. Hopefully the writers will get better at keeping people within more realistic behavior.